Thread by @owillis

its probably not true but it just feels fandom was less toxic before the internet. its almost better we couldnt communicate with people marching in lockstep on a 24-7 basis.

like comics? well, to talk about it you have to wait until monday to link up with the other comic book nerds at school, or at a convention in some hotel ballroom a few months from now.

i started collecting comics around '84-85 and i feel like back then it was just fine to read the ones you liked and ignore what you didnt and if the one you liked sucked, well next month was coming and no need to get so mad about any of it.

now it feels like people respond to not liking a comic/book/tv show/movie as if it was a personal insult to their very way of life. a lot of it is the magnification effect of social media but some of it is people acting differently too.

as a superman "stan" i didnt like how he originally got his butt kicked in dark knight returns. and i dont like how frank miller made him a reagan lackey but... it's fine. i still know dark knight is a masterpiece and even if i didnt... *shrug*

weve never had so many things you can culturally get into and now you are choosing to be mad about it? i honestly dont get it.

and im not saying it was better when this thing was off with us nerds. i genuinely like the fact that a mass market of adults and kids are as conversant in marvel universe insanity as a select group of us nerds were in the 80s/90s

us in 1980s: whispers about secret wars, crises

everyone in 2019: i have endgame theories/thoughts

its way better

eg i have a really good friend who i am certain has never cracked open a single comic book in her life. and yet she has seen every single mcu movie and is conversant in all the characters. as a comic fan i love that.